From The Mouth Of Babes
by blakes8th
Summary: Sandra learns some lessons from an unexpected source.


From the Mouth of Babes

Disclaimer: New tricks is the sole property of the BBC, but since they're not using it at the moment, I snuck into Aunty Beebs room and borrowed it. I'll put it back before they notice.

Rating: T ish, just a few mild swear words, and some snuggling.

Just a little one shot which has been bugging me.

I love reviews.

/

Sandra watched as the lift doors slowly opened, revealing the small lobby outside the office she had called home for the past eight years, well not this office since they had been moved around so many times. But she liked this one the best.

She hummed quietly to herself as she pushed the door open, then stopped dead in her tracks as she noticed the stranger sat on the couch. A girl, about fourteen or fifteen, sat with her head back her eyes closed as she moved her head to the music which was playing through the earphones attached to the phone in her hand. She had a familiar look about her, but the most striking thing about her was her hair which was predominantly bright pink with orange and green highlights, which clashed horribly with the bright red school blazer she was wearing.

She was about to introduce herself when a movement in her office caught her eye, she quietly moved through the room and peered through the door, DAC Robert Strickland was stood by her desk, his back to her he was hunched over slightly. Sandra cleared her throat, making him jump slightly.

"Oh, Sandra. I'm glad you're here, I was about to leave you a note." He looked slightly embarrased and kept on shooting glances past her to the figure on the couch.

"What can I do for you?" She replied politely.

"I need a favour. I'm sorry but I really don't have anyone else to turn to." He had a pleading look in his eyes, she smiled.

"I assume it has something to do with the young lady out there." She nodded towards the outer office. Strickland smiled wryly.

"Young lady? You havn't met my daughter before have you."

"Your daughter?" Sandra realised why the girl had been familiar, now she could see that there was a strong resemblance between father and daughter.

"Yes. Look, I'm in a bit of a fix. I got a call at seven o/clock this morning from the school she and her brother board at, she has managed to get herself suspended until her hair is a normal colour again. They have a very strict uniform code, which she is well aware of. Her mother is in Aspen skiing, so she's stuck with me for now." He sighed and rubbed his eyes.

"What do you need from me?" Sandra had a feeling she was going to regret asking.

"I've managed to clear my desk and cancel all my appointments for the rest of the week, except for a nine o/clock meeting with the Commissioner and the mayor's representitives which I have been told I must attend, no matter what. I just need somewhere she can stay for an hour where she can't get into any bother. I'd say she'll be no trouble, but I'd probably be lying." He sounded weary.

"Of course, we're just finishing up paperwork at the moment. We've got the Johnson case to look at, but I can't see that she'll be in the way at all." He snorted.

"As I said, you don't know her. If there's a way to get into trouble, Hermione can find it." He closed his eyes and leaned against her desk. He sighed, "I'm being unfair, she's not that bad. It's only me she hates, she shouldn't be a problem, and I'll be back as soon as I can."

"It's no problem. And I'm sure she doesn't hate you, she's just being a teenager. I was horrible at that age." She smiled. He shrugged.

"It feels like hate. Thank you." He smiled graciously at her. He stood and walked back into the main office. "Hermione...HERMIONE!" He tried again to get her attention, the girl continued to move her head to the music. "H.E.R.M.I.O.N.E!" He tried again. She either had her music too loud, or she was ignoring him. He strode over to her and pulled one of the ear pieces out.

"Oi, do you mind!" She stropped. He stood over her, his face dark.

"I know you could hear me. Now, I'll be about an hour. Behave! DSI Pullman has kindly agreed to let you stay here while I have to attend this blessed meeting. Be polite please. When I'm done, we'll go and try and get that sorted." He pointed to her hair.

"Maybe I don't want it sorted." She replied defiantly. Strickland bit back what he was about to say and took a deep breath.

"I'll be back as soon as I can." He looked at Sandra, and left the office before he lost it completely.

"Wow. I've never seen him so wound up." Sandra commented as the door swung shut. Hermione smirked.

"Oh it's easy. I've had loads of practise."

"Why?" Sandra asked.

"Why what?"

"Why would you want to spend your time winding him up? he doesn't get to see you very much, so why would you want to spend your time together like that?"

"Well, that's his fault isn't it." She shrugged.

"What's his fault?" Sandra sat opposite the girl.

"That we don't see each other much. He's always cancelling on us."

"I don't think..." Sandra began, Hermione interupted her.

"You're her, arn't you."

"Who?" Sandra asked, confused.

"You're Sandra. You're the woman Dad was shagging behind Mum's back." The girl looked directly at Sandra. Sandra blinked.

"I beg your pardon." She thought maybe she'd heard wrong.

"You were his bit on the side. The reason they split up."

Sandra was dumbstruck. She looked at the girl in front of her. There was a venom in the girls eyes.

"Hermione, I don't know what you've been told, but I've never slept with your father."

"Yeah, whatever."

"No!" The girl jumped as Sandra raised her voice. "I've known your Dad for seven years, and I know for a fact that he never cheated on your mother. As a matter of fact, I know that he has only had one relationship since the divorce, and that was a disaster. I think you need to speak with him."

"Why? What's the point?"

"The point is, you seem to only have one side of the story. Your dad didn't cancel all those times. I was in his office five years ago at Christmas time when he took the call from your mother telling him she was taking you and your brother to Disneyland Paris and he wouldn't be able to see you until new year. He was gutted. That was only one time, there were so many others, I've lost count of the times he's told me about his plans for the weekend with you and your brother, only to have him turn up a few hour later in a foul mood because your Mother had made other plans."

"No, he went away for Christmas, with you mum said. She took us to Paris to make up for him letting us down." The girl looked slightly shaken.

"You need to talk to him. He's a good man. A pain in the rear end sometimes." Sandra smiled, Hermione smiled back. "He never cheated. The divorce hit him hard, he tried all he could to save the marriage." Sandra looked at the girl's hair. "So what's with all this?" Hermione shrugged.

"Mum thinks it's funny, winding the school up." She grinned mischieviously. "It washes out. Three or four washes and it'll be gone," Sandra rolled her eyes.

"Why didn't you tell your dad?" Sandra asked. The girl just shrugged.

Just then the door opened and the other three members of the UCOS team entered. Sandra watched as the girl suddenly looked a bit nervous as three pairs of eyes locked with hers.

"Guys. This is Hermione Strickland, she's going to be hanging out here for an hour or two until the boss can get clear of the meeting he's had to go to. Hermione, this is Jack, Brain and Gerry."

"Oh, I know. Dad is always going on about you lot."

"All good, I doubt." Gerry grouched. Jack smiled.

"No, he raves about you, tells me you're the best he's got." She stopped, suddenly embarrased. "That's what he says anyway." She muttered, shrugging. The three men all looked at each other, slightly surprised.

"Okay, well. I'll get the kettle on." Brian shrugged. "Who want's one?" The others all nodded. He looked at the girl who looked a bit like a rabbit caught in the headlights. "Would you like one?" She blinked.

"Yes please. Can I help?" Brian smiled an affirmative, she stood and went to help with the hot drinks. Gerry sidled over to Sandra.

"So, what's the story?" He whispered, nodding towards the teenager.

"Boarding school suspended her until her hair is a normal colour again." She glanced over to where Brian was chatting to the girl and indecated for Gerry and Jack to join her in her office. Brian saw them go and nodded, indecating that he understood, he would keep her occupied for a few minutes.

Sandra sighed as she perched on the edge of the desk, Gerry shut the door, as he and Jack entered her haven. The two men could see that she was slightly shaken.

"What's wrong?" Jack asked, his voice taking on that fatherly tone which could sooth an angry bull.

"That girl has been lied to. That's what's wrong. And I don't know if I have the right to interfere." She looked torn, they both knew how betrayed she had felt when she had found out the truth about her father, Sandra was obviously relating to her.

"What's he been telling her?" Gerry asked, a dark look in his eyes. He knew how important honesty was when dealing with children, especially when they were stuck in the middle of a divorce. A confused look crossed Sandra's face for a moment, before she realised what he had assumed.

"Oh, no. Not him. In fact, he hasn't told her anything, that's the problem. She's been led to believe that her parent's divorced because he was screwing around behind her mother's back, with me! And that he can't be bothered to see them, which is why he keeps on cancelling their visits."

"But it was her screwing around, wasn't it? He was gutted, I remember that much. And doesn't she keep taking the kids off on holidays with her new bloke?" Gerry felt a bit guilty for assuming it was the boss who'd been lying. Sandra nodded. "And he's never set the record straight?" Sandra shrugged.

"Why ever not? Why would he let his own kids believe the worst about him?" Jack was stunned. He too had thought Strickland had been the one at fault.

"I don't know. When he was here earlier, she really hated him. She was stunned when I pointed out that I had never been with him."

"As if." Gerry snorted. Sandra looked down. She knew he could be a harsh boss, and that he could wind the guys up at times, but she really didn't get the out and out hostility her boys showed towards Rob Strickland.

"That's not fair Gerry. It isn't like I havn't been tempted."

"Wot! Stricker's!" Gerry exclaimed. Sandra shushed him, aware that the man's teenage daughter was only a plywood door away.

"What stopped you?" Jack asked, his voice soft, but his eyes twinkling. Sandra thought for a moment.

"You lot. I know you don't have much reguard for him. I suppose I didn't want to have to choose." She sighed, "It was easier to just pretend I didn't notice him."

"So you ignored his little looks, shot down his attempts at flirting with you and turned him down flat on the few occasions he grew a pair and actually plucked up the courage to ask you out." Jack summed up. "All while he was being ripped into by his ex-wife, cold shouldered by his children and laughed at by the world in general."

"All right, all right. No need to twist the knife." Gerry interrupted, seeing the look in Sandra's eyes.

"I'm not. I just think you should do what you feel is right, and not give a stuff what three old men think. And for the record, I wouldn't have made you choose." He smiled at her. "Don't get me wrong, I still think he can be a bit of a tosser, but apart from that, he's alright."

"You gotta understand, we care about you, and over the last nine years we've had to watch you suffer from that terrible condition called wanker-magnetism syndrome, where the sufferer only seems to be able to form romantic attachments to complete bastards." Sandra couldn't help but smile, Gerry was spot on. "Think of us as your big brothers. It's our job to be protective, whether you want us to be or not. You see, it doesn't matter how angry or upset you get over us poking our nose into your private life, we're still going to do it 'cause we care about you." He paused, before giving her a wry smile. "As for 'im, well, he is a wanker, but he's our wanker." Sandra laughed out loud.

"How the hell did we go from discussing what I should do about Hermione, to whether or not I should date her Dad?"

"I think you already know what you should do about Hermione, because for some reason known only to him, her Dad can't talk to her. And if, God forbid, anything was to happen to him, she would feel as betrayed as you have." Jack, replied. He still felt a pang of guilt, he was one of those who had lied to her all those years before, and he still felt responsible for the strained relationship Sandra had with her mother.

"Your right. Look, I'm going to take Hermione out for a few hours, when her Dad comes looking for her, stall him for a while. I'm going to take her to my hairdresser and get her hair sorted. While we're out, we can talk." She grabbed her bag. She left the office and re-entered the main room, Brian was writing notations on the whiteboard over photos which Hermione was sticking up under instruction from the older man. Brian turned as they approached.

"There you are, Your teas getting cold."

"Thanks." Gerry mumbled, picking up the rapidly cooling drink, he handed the other cup to Jack. Sandra to a sip of hers before turning and looking at the board.

"That's good. Did you get all that done in those few minutes?"

"Yeah, this one is way more efficient than those other two silly buggers, can we keep her?" Hermione blushed at Brian's praise. Sandra laughed.

"Come on, you and me are going to get some girly time, let's leave Happy, Grumpy and Doc to get on with it." Hermione smiled and followed Sandra out of the room, leaving the three men looking at each other. Brian pushed his glasses up his nose.

"So, what did I miss while I was babysitting."

/

Sandra led the way to her car, unlocking it for the girl to get in. As the weather was nice she put the roof down.

"Pretty nice car." Hermione stated. Sandra grinned as she put her sunglasses on.

"Thank's, your Dad's car is nicer though." She pointed over to the soft top merc parked over the other side of the garage. Hermione nodded.

"Yeah, I suppose." She glanced at Sandra. "So where are we going?"

"Trust me."

They drove for about twenty minutes, before Sandra pulled into the shopping centre. She parked up, put the roof back up and locked the car.

"Come on, It's just down here." She led the girl to 'Rhoda's Hair and beauty salon'.

"Wow! You come here? All the girl's at school rave about this place."

"I've been coming here for years, Rhoda had only just finished training when I first met her." She pushed the door open and ushered the suddenly shy fourteen year old inside. They were approached by a middle aged woman who greeted them warmly.

"Sandra! While I am always happy to see you, please tell me I havn't forgotten your appointment."

"No, I'm here to ask for your help." She stepped aside and put her arm around Hermione. "This is Hermione, she's the daughter of a friend of mine. As you can see she's been experimenting a bit. Please could you help us sort it."

"For you, I will do my best." She felt a strand of Hermione's hair. "What sort of dye is it?"

"I got it from a joke shop. The girl at the counter said it will take two or three washes to get rid of it."

"It is a very vibrant colour, is your normal hair colour blonde?" Hermione shook her head.

"No. Dark brown like my Dad. One of the girls at school helped me dye it blonde first."

"Do you know what she used?" Rhoda looked at Sandra, a worried look on her face. Hermione shook her head.

"I can only tell you that it stank." She looked worried as Rhoda sighed. "It's bad news isn't it?"

"Your hair feels very dry. I think it has been bleached. I can probably get rid of the colour, but I dont know what it will be left with. Worst case scenario, I will have to bleach it again, leaving it almost white." She looked at Sandra apologetically. Sandra shrugged.

"That will be fine, I'm sure the school will accept that, and at least your Dad will know we've done our best."

Rhoda stepped away to have a conversation with one of the other women in the salon, then she came back to them.

"Let me take your jacket." She indecated to the school blazer, "Jodie will wash your hair through with a special mix that I have, then she will condition it to try and help moisturise it a little bit. Then we can see what we are left with. How does that sound?" The girl smiled.

"Anything you can do to help is much appreciated. I really didn't mean to cause Dad so much trouble." She looked down at her shoes. The other girl who had been introduced as Jodie came over to them with a smile.

"All ready?" She led the girl over to one of the sinks. Sandra heard her re-assuring the teenager. "Don't worry, by the time Rhoda's finished, you'll look fantastic."

"So..." Rhoda looked at Sandra with raised eyebrows. Sandra laughed.

"He really is just a friend. Though, I am becoming more open to possibilities." She smiled.

They chatted for about half an hour before Jodie returned.

"We're ready for you." She told the two older women.

They made their way through to the cutting area, Hermione was sat in a chair looking into the large mirror. Her hair hidden under a towel wrap.

"OhhhKaaay. Lets see what we have." Rhoda unwrapped the towel, gently massaging the hair. She pulled the towel away revealing the hair. It was a sort of creamy yellow colour. "Well, that's not too bad. I have an idea, do you remember the girl who played Hermione in the Harry Potter films?"

Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Oh yes. Try being called Hermione in a boarding school. I swear I've heard every wand and broom joke that's ever been thought of." The two older women laughed.

"Right, well do you remember when she stopped playing the part she had her hair cut short into a pixie cut." The girl nodded. "If we did that, it would help the condition of your hair, if we leave it long you'll be plagued by split ends, the bleach and dye has completely dried it out. We don't have to go as short as she did. Maybe to your nape of your neck at the back, then dropping off so it's slightly longer at the front."

"Sort of Jessie J but shorter?" Hermione asked. Rhoda nodded. "What do you think?" She looked at Sandra.

"I trust Rhoda. It will grow again, and maybe it will appease the school."

"What about Dad?"

"You let me take care of him." She winked. Hermione nodded.

"Let's go for it."

/

Robert walked down the stairs towards the UCOS office, his pace slow, he really wasn't in any sort of hurry to get there, he knew there would just be another face off with his daughter waiting for him. As he approached the door, he bacame slightly worried, he could see the three men through the glass, but he couldn't see any sign of Sandra, or Hermione. He pushed the door open, the three retired officers looking up from their assigned tasks to greet the newcomer.

"Morning." He responded, glancing around. "Mmmm.. Is everything alright."

"Yes sir, we're just going over the paperwork from the file, putting everything into some kind of order." Brian answered. Gerry stood up.

"He mean's, where is his daughter, you muppet." Gerry grinned, making Jack laugh. Robert smiled.

"Yes, well I wouldn't have put it quite like that." He paused, looking around. "But while we are on the subject.."

"Sandra took her to get her hair sorted out. She said she would only be a couple of hours." Gerry answered.

"Oh, alright, umm... Well could you let me know when they get back." He nodded. "I'll let you get on." As he turned to leave, a voice stopped him.

"Sir, could I ask you a question?" Jack stood, Strickland nodded, slighly nervous.

"Why does your Daughter believe you were the one messing around behind your wife's back, when we all know it was the other way around. And why does she think Sandra was the other woman?" Jack looked the younger man in the eye. He could see the indecision in his bosses face, he knew that Strickland wasn't used to being questioned in this way, "It will go no further than this room." He added. Strickland sighed and perched on the edge of one of the desks.

"Kaye got full custody of the children by lying to the court, her Father is a barrister, and she has known most of the cities judges since she was little. She convinced them I had been having an affair with Sandra."

"Why not tell your kids the truth?" Gerry asked.

"What good would that do. They have to live with Kaye and her new husband, I'll not use them as a weapon, leaving them stuck in the middle. As long as they think I'm the bastard, they at least get to be happy at home."

"That's not fair on them though, one day they will find out the truth, then they'll feel guilty for believing the worst of you. And what if something should happen to you, they would never get the opportunity to get to know their Dad." Gerry interupted. He stood in front of his boss, "Look, when it comes to divorce and how it can affect children, I think I can safely say I'm something of an expert." The other two men chuckled, Robert gave a nod of agreement.

"I have to say, I've always envied the way you managed to not only be a good father to your daughters even though you were no longer living under the same roof, but you managed to stay friendly with all of your ex-wives. I can't even be in the same room as Kaye."

"Yeah, well, it helped that none of my ex's wanted to actually hurt me. From what I've picked up on the grapevine, your's is a piece of work. If you don't mind me saying so." Robert laughed.

"Piece of work doesn't quite cover it. She wasn't like that when we first met, she seemed to change after I started to get promoted, the more she had, the more she wanted. I just couldn't keep up. Eventually she found a multi-millionaire property tycoon who could fulfill all her wants. That was the end of me." Gerry looked at the others, Strickland seemed so defeated, one thing they were all sure of, no-one had realised just how much their boss had been hiding.

"Sir, how come you've never told us any of this before?" Brian asked softly. The younger man smiled.

"No-one seemed interested. I'm just the tosser from upstairs. No-body actually wants to socialise with me." There was an uncomfortable silence. eventually Jack broke it.

"But you're telling us now."

"There's not much point trying to hide anything from you lot. Besides, I expect my little girl is currently telling Sandra what a complete loser her Father is, and anyway, as you've already pointed out, most of the station knows my wife ran off with another man." He gave them a wry smile, "Not much stays a secret around here."

The three elder men looked at each other for a few moments, not quite sure whether to carry on with the conversation or to let their boss off the hook. Brian eventually took pity on the man.

"I think it's time for tea. Who's ready for a brew."

"Oh yeah, I could murder a cuppa." Gerry agreed.

"Please." Jack nodded. Brian gathered the mugs. He looked over to where the boss was still perched on the edge of the desk, obviously lost in thought.

"Sir?" Strickland looked up. He saw Brian holding a mug up.

"Oh, um, thank you, but I'd better get back upstairs, leave you in peace." He suddenly looked as though he wanted to bolt for the safety of his office.

"I thought Sandra said you only had the one meeting this morning." Jack asked.

"Yes, well..."

"You may as well have one, then we could do with a hand sorting through this lot seeing as we've been abandoned by our leader." Gerry added.

Strickland seemed to think for a moment, then he nodded.

"Thank you. What can I do?"

"Well, you could go and get us some more milk from the canteen for a start. Some bright spark forgot to get any this morning." Brian looked pointedly at Gerry. Robert smiled.

"I won't be long."

/

Sandra and Hermione wandered through the shopping centre, by the time they reached the food centre, Sandra had aquired a new pair of shoes and matching bag, and Hermione had a new pair of trainers and a sun visor for tennis. Sandra stopped and looked at the various menus on offer.

"Right. Pizza, pasta, noodles, jacket potato, baguette, or sushi?"

"Not sushi. I quite fancy a baguette."

"I could take some back for the boys, and your Dad." She turned to the girl, handing her a five pound note. "Why don't you get us a couple of coffees. I'll sort out the food. Which baguette would you like?"

"Um.. Coronation chicken." Sandra smiled.

"Good choice. Get me a cappucino, then grab a table. I'll be back in a moment." She turned to head to the sandwich bar, before stopping. She turned back to the teenager. "What would your Dad like?" Hermione thought for a moment.

"He loves Italian, so the spicy meatballs, or maybe the parma ham and parmesan. No tomatoes."

"Got it. See you in ten. I'm just going to give the office a ring." She watched as the girl joined the coffee queue before lining up in the food line. She dialed Gerry's number. He soon answered. "Hi, it's me. We're just having a coffee then we'll be heading back, is everything ok?"

"Yeah. The boss is here, he's helping us go through the original witness statements. Look, I'm on the fire escape at the moment so he can't hear me, we had a word with him. He didn't tell his kids the truth because he didn't want to put them in the middle. He let them believe he was the bad guy so they would be happy at home. Poor bastard."

"Ok. Look, I'll be back soon. I'm bringing dinner, so keep him there. See you soon." She hung up and turned her attention to the menu board. Her mind was made up. It was time for a heart to heart.

They were soon seated opposite each other, sipping a couple of cappucinos. Sandra had the baguettes in her bag and they had agreed to take them back to the office to eat with the boys. She looked at the teenager sat across from her. She had her Dad's eyes, that was for sure, and she had the same habit of looking down when she was thinking. She was obviously thinking now.

"So." Sandra started. "Tell me about your Father." The girl looked up.

"What do you mean?"

"I've known him for seven years, yet I don't know much about him. He keeps himself to himself, never lets anybody in. I want to know...What's his favourite colour? Does he follow a football team? What music does he like? Silly stuff like that." The girl sat back an thought for a moment.

"His favourite colour is blue or green. He supports Manchester city, has done since he was a boy. He likes all sorts of music."

"I know he play's the guitar."

"He's better at the piano. When I was little he used to let me sit on his lap, I'd put my fingers on top of his and he would play. He used to tell me I was the one playing the piano, not him. He used to sing me a song called 'the stowaway'." She smiled. "He would have me on one knee, Russ on the other. He'd spend hours with us, just plinking out silly tunes."

"Sounds like he loved you both very much."

"Oh, I know he did. That's why I couldn't understand why he left us for you. But now you're telling me that's not what happened." The girl suddenly looked younger than her fifteen years, Sandra took hold of one of her hands.

"When I was fourteen, my Father died. I loved him so much, he was my hero, and when he was gone, I was so angry. At my Mum, because she wasn't him. At my friends, because they still had their Dads. At the world in general. Why had my Dad died, it wasn't fair. Then a few years ago I found out that everybody had lied to me. My Dad had had an affair, he had another child, a son. And he had killed a man. He was about to be accused of murder, so he killed himself." Hermione looked at her with a shocked look on her face. "I had spent my whole life trying to be just like him, trying to be someone he would be proud of, only to find out the whole thing was a lie. I don't want the same thing to happen to you."

Hermione looked like she was fighting back tears.

"He brought us presents at christmas. Russ gave his back unopened and told Dad that he didn't want anything from him and we had a better Dad now. I remember Dad's face, he looked as though somebody had just ripped his chest open and torn his heart out. I watched from my bedroom window as he got back into his car. I had never seen him cry before that day. I didn't care, all I could think was 'he chose this, now he has to live with what he's done'. But he didn't do anything, did he?"

"No, he didn't. I know that your mother cheated on him, and I know that he knew about the affair for a long time, but he stayed because of you and your brother. I also know that it was your Mother who demanded a divorce."

"I thought you didn't know much about him." Hermione tried to smile.

"It was his birthday, the first one after the divorce. He asked me out for a meal, but not realising the significance of the day, I turned him down. When I found out it was his birthday I went looking for him. I found him at a bar, getting completely rat-arsed. I took him home and he told me everything, just before he passed out on his sofa." She smiled. "I don't know if he even remembers telling me. I do know that you need to ask him for the truth, he'll never give it up otherwise."

"How. It's been so long. I've been so mean to him over the last few years, why would he tell me now."

"Just ask him. It doesn't matter how old you are, he'll always be your Daddy, and you will always be his little girl." She smiled at the girl. "Come on, lets get back." They stood and made their way back to the car. As Sandra unlocked it, Hermione stopped and looked at her, a question on her lips.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"This morning when I accused you of being the 'other woman' you told me that you've never slept with him."

"That's right."

"Why not?"

"What?" Sandra was taken by surprise by the question.

"Why not? You seem to care for him, and he's not bad looking." She let the question hang. Sandra thought for a moment.

"I suppose the time just wasn't right. But you never know." She winked. Hermione laughed and got into the car.

/

When they walked into the office, four pairs of eyes all locked on them. Robert stood open mouthed at the sight of his daughters new hair style.

"Tahdah." Hermione squeeked. Sandra came to her rescue.

"It had to be cut. The bleach and colour had damaged it, so this was the best solution."

"It looks amazing." Robert smiled. "It suits you shorter." Hermione beamed. She approached her Dad and put her arms around him. He folded her into his embrace, slightly worried. "What's wrong sweetheart?"

"Can we talk?" she asked. He nodded.

"Use my office." Sandra interupted. She watched as they closed the door behind them.

"So. What's going on." Jack asked.

"A happy ending I hope."

/

"So.. Are you going to tell me what's bothering you?" Robert watched as his daughter circled the room. Something had changed, he knew that for sure.

"Why did you lie to us?"

"When?"

"You let us think it was all your fault. You let us believe you were a complete bastard who didn't care about us. You let Mum get away with everything."

Robert sighed, he had realised when he was being interrogated earlier that he may have been found out.

"You had to live with your Mother and Marcus. What good would it have done for you and Russ to know the truth. At least all your anger was focused in one place, you could be happy at home."

"But that's not fair. I'm old enough to make my own decisions. I've been horrible to you and you never deserved any of it. How do you think that makes me feel, how can I ever make that up to you. And even though Russ is only twelve, he has the right to know the truth as well, he's so angry because he feels so betrayed. He needs to know the truth. All we ever wanted was our Daddy back, the one who always had time for us, the one who used to write us little notes and draw us silly little pictures and put them in our lunch boxes so we would find them at lunch time." Rob felt his eyes filling up. Hermione saw this and threw herself at her Dad, he enveloped her in a bear hug. "I love you Dad." He heard the whisper in his ear. He whispered back.

"I never stopped loving you, sweetheart."

/

A short while later, after the baguettes had been polished off, Rob stood and gave Hermione a smile.

"We had better get going. I'm going to need to get some shopping in. I wasn't expecting a guest."

"Can we get the stuff to make one of your incredible lasagnes?" She turned to Sandra. "Dad is a great cook, and he makes the most amazing lasagne." Rob smiled shyly.

"Maybe I'll have to come and sample it one day." She laughed. Hermione's eyes twinkled.

"How about tonight. Come over for dinner." She turned to her Dad. "Please Dad, as a thank you for helping me get my hair sorted out." Rob looked at Sandra, he noticed that the boys had all suddenly found something to do over the other side of the room by Brian's desk.

"You are very welcome to join us." He stuttered shyly. Sandra smiled.

"I'd love to. What time, and should I bring anything?"

"About seven. And no, I'll see to everything." He answered, surprised, and delighted that she had accepted.

"I'm looking forward to it. See you then."

She watched as Father and Daughter left the unit. The boys all wandered back over to her.

"A dinner date eh?" Jack teased, Brian laughed.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Gerry added.

"Well, that doesn't rule out much." Sandra countered. "Anyway, it's just a meal, nothing's going to happen. His teenage daughter is there after all."

"Ok. I believe you." Gerry smiled.

"Millions wouldn't." Brian finished.

/

Later that evening, Sandra found herself sitting at her bosses dining table, opposite his teenage daughter after enjoying one of the most delicious meals she had ever has. She sat back and took a sip of red wine.

"That was without a doubt the most amazing lasagne I have ever tasted." She smiled, Robert blushed.

"Well, I didn't do it alone, I had help." He smiled at Hermione, she grinned.

"I only did the salad. I leave the real cooking to the master."

"It was all fabulous. Do you need a hand clearing up?"

"No, that's fine. I can take care of it." Rob answered. Sandra smiled.

"I'm not about to eat and run. Please let me help." She watched as Hermione started to gather the plates. Rob looked at her, a serious look on his face.

"You already have, more than you can know." He smiled shyly, before looking down at the table, a blush spreading over his cheeks. Sandra reached over and took hold of his hand. She squeezed it gently. Hermione's voice called out from the kitchen.

"Well I'm going to eat and run. I've got to finish an my english essay. If that's ok with you guys. Then I'll turn in."

"That's fine. Good night love." Rob stood and walked over to his daughter and gave her a kiss on the forehead. She smiled, and turned to Sandra.

"Night, maybe see you in the morning." She grinned and beat a hasty retreat before her Dad realised what she had said. As her words sunk in, his blush returned full force. He looked at Sandra with a look of horror in his eyes.

"I'm sorry... I don't know where she got that from..." He stuttered, she smiled.

"It's ok, just a little private joke from earlier." She reasured him, he nodded looking down. He started to load the dishwasher as Sandra cleared the table, they were finished in no time. Robert poured another glass of wine for himself before re-filling Sandra's glass. He looked thoughtful.

"Penny for them?" He looked up as she came to stand next to him. He smiled.

"Thank you." He replied. She looked confused for a moment. "For today."

"It's nothing, it was my hairdresser who did the hard work."

"That's not what I mean and you know it." He smiled, she laughed softly.

"I was scared that I might be overstepping, but the more I heard... I couldn't let it go. Everybody lied to me because they thought they were protecting me, I ended up hating my Mother, and now... it's like we're strangers, we have nothing in common and nothing we do can undo all those years of hate. I didn't want that to happen to you." She watched as a small smile formed on his features. "What? What's so funny?"

"The thought that you may have been afraid of overstepping. When have you ever hesitated before. If you think there is something to be done, you do it. Damn the consequences. It's one of the things I love the most about you." He stopped and looked at her as he realised what he had just said.

"I'm sorry... I didn't mean... I" She put her hand to his mouth to stop him.

"Stop digging. It's fine, I'm not going to run away and shout sexual harassment." She paused. "Is that why you stopped asking me?"

"Asking you?"

"When you first arrived at UCOS, there was always something there, an attraction. But you were still married. Then after the divorce, there was a period when you would keep on hinting at taking me to dinner, or for a drink. But then you stopped. Were you afraid I'd report you?" He took a sip of wine.

"A bit. But I gave up because you made it pretty clear you wouldn't go out with me if I was the last man on earth. I finally got the message at the 2006 Christmas party, you were four sails to the wind, dancing with everyone who asked, except me, you told me to piss off and find somebody else to stalk." He drained the glass of wine before re-filling it. He glanced at her and was horrified to see tears running down her face. "Hey, It's ok. It was a long time ago. I already had a pretty good idea that I wasn't your kind of man."

"Why?" She couldn't remember the party, it had been just after she had found out about her Dad committing suicide, she had been on course for a complete meltdown, before the boys had stopped her fall.

"I walked in on you dancing with Gerry in the office, remember. He's charming, confident, funny, a lovable rogue. Everything I'm not. Why on earth would you ever look twice at me when you work with somebody like that." He drained his glass again and turned away from her, he didn't need her to see how weak he was, he was fighting to hold back his emotions. He felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Please, don't turn away from me. I don't remember that party, I was on self destruct...Please." She suddenly realised the timing of her rejection of him. "Oh God, It was just after the Berlin bitch. Christ! I may as well have kicked you in the nuts while you were already down. I am so sorry." She put more pressure on his shoulder, he turned to face her. "And for the record, Gerry is lovely, he's a great friend, but he's not my type. To tell you the truth, I havn't really figured out what my type is yet." She brushed her hand along the side of his face. "Don't pay attention to anything I say when I've had too much to drink. I'm an angry drunk and I lash out at people." She smiled as he tentatively wiped the tears off her cheeks.

"Does this mean I still have a chance." He smiled back.

"Oh yes. I've done a lot of soul searching today, but it was your little girl who made me see things clearly."

"Oh? How?"

"When you first left us alone, she asked about the affair we had. I assured her that we had never slept together. After spending the morning together and talking things through, she asked me why."

"Why what?"

"Why I had never slept with you. And do you know, I couldn't give her a good answer." She ran her hands around the collar of his shirt. "I was asked earlier why I never accepted one of your dinner invitations, the only reason I could think of was that I didn't want to upset the balance of the office. And I realise now that that really isn't a good enough excuse. I think that the real reason is that I was scared that maybe you would turn out to be the one." He smiled and put his hands on her hips as she moved her hands around the back of his neck, she gently played with the soft hair at the nape of his neck. "So what do you think? Do you want to sleep with me?" She whispered, a slightly nervous edge to her voice. She frowned as he shook his head.

"No, I don't want to sleep with you." He ran his hands up her back, "I want to make love to you."

Sandra smiled, and tilted her face up towards his, he responded by closing the gap between them and capturing her lips with his own, the kiss started off shy and tentative, but soon turned into a long, passionate, reality bending kiss which left them both gasping for air.

"Let me know if I'm going too fast." He felt he needed to give her the opportunity to stop what was happening. When he had cooked for her this evening, he had never expected any of this, his mind was still racing to catch up. A small part of him kept on questioning the wisdom of what they were doing. But right now he didn't care, he had the most incredible woman in his arms, and if she woke up in the morning and decided it was all a mistake, then he had better make sure the memories they made this night would last a lifetime.

"It's been seven years, I think we've thought about this long enough." She replied as he leant in and smiled against her mouth before melting her bones with the most passionate kiss she had ever experienced.

/

She awoke to the sound of a kettle boiling, it took her a few seconds to get her bearings, remembering the night before. She had her head pillowed on the shoulder of the warm body still sleeping next to her, his arms still wrapped around her, as if he was afraid to let go. She could feel the soft rise and fall of his chest and his heart beating under her hand. She ran her hand over the contours of his body, softly so as she wouldn't wake him remembering the times during the night when that body had driven her to heights of passion she had never experienced before. She had never felt so cherished as he had made love to her slowly over the course of several hours, sending her to heaven and back time and again. She never would have guessed such passion had been hidden under those pristene suits. She noticed his breathing change and looked up to find his blue eyes watching her.

"Morning." She smiled. He smiled back and captured her lips.

Just then a tap at the door broke the moment.

"Are you decent, or am I going to be scarred for life? I have coffee." Sandra laughed softly and buried her head in her lovers shoulder. He pulled the covers up a bit higher before answering.

"You're quite safe, don't worry."

The door opened and Hermione came in carrying two steaming cups of coffee, the smell made Sandra turn her head. She smiled shyly at the teenager.

"Good morning." She quipped. Hermione beamed.

"It's a fantastic morning. Maybe you can talk him into making omlettes for breakfast. Cheese and chive is my favourite."

"What time is it?" Robert fumbled for his watch.

"Just gone six. I thought I had better wake you since Sandra has to go to work." The girl smiled as Sandra groaned and buried her head against her Dad's chest. "I'll leave you in peace. Since I'm still suspended I'm going back to bed." She gave a little wave and left the room shutting the door behind her. Rob looked down at the woman snuggled against him, he ran his hands down her body, making her gasp.

"I need to get up." she muttered as he explored her body.

"Mmmm. But your boss is away, who'd notice if you were a few hours late?"

She grinned broadly at him.

"You're a bad influence. Do you know that?"

/

As Sandra sat at her desk a few hours later, she couldn't help but smile at the turn her life had taken. The boys had all given her a gentle ribbing when she had turned up late, but they had all given her their blessings.

Things had changed overnight, her life suddenly had something else in it besides work. She had found something special in the most unexpected place. She was excited and afraid at the same time. She jumped as her phone beeped, she looked and saw that she had a message, she saw it was from Rob and opened it. _'Spoken to school, they are ok with Hermione's hair so she can go back on Monday. She spoke to Rufus, I think we're going to be alright. See you tonight. Love you, Rob'_ She smiled and answered. _'I'm glad you're getting the chance to straighten things out with Rufus. I can't wait for tonight. I love you too.' _She smiled and pressed send before noticing the figure at the door. Gerry stood watching her with a smile on his face.

"I hope I'm not going to have to confiscate that." He teased.

"Bugger off!" She replied, but her grin gave her away.

"You know. If you had asked me a few days ago about you and 'im being an item, I'd 'ave laughed, then had you taken away by the men in white coats. But I was wrong, because if he's the one responsible for you looking so happy, there must be something special about him." Sandra looked up at her best friend with tears in her eyes.

"Thank you. You have no idea how much it means to me to hear you say that." Gerry looked embarrased.

"Yeah.. Well...Just leave the snogging at home. That desk is for working on..." He grinned and ducked out as the ball of paper sailed past his ear. Sandra smiled. She stood to join her team in the outer office. She paused and looked at her desk, an image popping into her mind which made her blush.

'That could be interesting' She said to herself. 'Let's see what the future brings.'

/

Author's note: PHEW! That turned into a monster. Who want's a naughty little sequal involving the desk?


End file.
